All Security Watch
- Germany and France call for new 'spy rules'
Leaders want new accords amid allegations of US spying that reaches as deep as Angela Merkel's mobile phone. An existing 'five eyes' deal could provide a model.
- US court upholds embassy bombings conviction, rejecting speedy trial claim
The appeals court rejected the argument that Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani, a former Al Qaeda operative, should have his conviction and life sentence overturned because he didn't have a speedy trial.
- US merchant seamen captured off Nigeria: the newest threat in piracy
The captain and the chief engineer of a US ship were captured by pirates off the coast of Nigeria. While pirate attacks have lessened off Somalia, the threat in the Gulf of Guinea has increased.
- US spying in Europe: Will it backfire on Google and Facebook?
Angered by reports of US surveillance efforts in France, as well as spying on state leaders in Germany and Italy, the EU is considering a tough new law, which could put US firms in a sticky spot.
- West Africa's ferocious pirates grab two Americans
Nigeria's waters are some of the most dangerous in the world, and have been for some time. So far no solution is in sight.
- Libyan militias' most valuable hostage: oil
Militias have seized control of Libya's oil facilities to extract concessions from the government, bringing national oil production down to a third of what it was at the beginning of 2013.
- Pentagon's top three threats in the 'deep future' What sorts of threats will the US military face in the 'deep future'? Here is a list of the top three picks.
- Using drones to kill people for doing calisthenics
One reason US assertions of limited civilian casualties in drone strikes don't hold water.
- Iran halts 20-percent enrichment. Are nuclear talks working?
Iran's announcement that it has halted enriching uranium to a level close to bomb-grade appears to signal rare progress in nuclear talks. But there is much working against a deal.
- The US-Saudi breakup that isn't
Maybe pleasing Saudi Arabia shouldn't be a high priority for the US anyway.
- In Libya, militias call the government's shots
The head of a Libyan militia that kidnapped the country's prime minister earlier this month says the government is powerless to punish him.
- Destroying Syria's chemical weapons: Can Norway shoulder the task?
The US says Norway is an ideal location to destroy roughly half of Syria's chemical weapons stockpiles. But Norway would have to surmount legal – and political – hurdles.
- Iranian hardliners sic media on top US nuclear negotiator
US Undersecretary of State Wendy Sherman has been slammed by hardliners for her comment that 'deception is part of the DNA,' despite the Iranian government's clear desire to ignore it.
- Why is Saudi Arabia distancing itself from the US?
The US-Saudi relationship, which is built on defense partnerships and oil wealth, has been publicly strained over disagreement over Syria, warming US-Iran ties, and a UN Security Council seat.
- Volgograd bomber planned to attack Moscow
The Volgograd bomber, a woman from Russia's volatile North Caucasus region, appears to have been aided by her husband, an explosives expert she recruited to the insurgency.
- Drones? What drones? Obama and Pakistan's Sharif to accentuate the positive.
Obama hosts Nawaz Sharif Wednesday, and with the often-rocky US-Pakistani marriage now in kiss-and-make-up mode, the leaders are expected to emphasize issues that unite, rather than divide (drones).
- Murders at weddings and attempted assassinations. Is this what Egypt has become?
As Egypt's military-backed government drafts a new constitution in secret, there are worrying signs that political violence is becoming the norm in the Arab world's largest country.